Singapore

SINGAPORE CUSTOMS SETS UP ACADEMY TO HELP BUSINESSES

9 Feb 2012

SINGAPORE, Feb 9 (Bernama) -- Singapore Customs has launched the republic''sfirst dedicated institution to raise capabilities in customs administration. Targeted at businesses, the Singapore Customs Academy will conduct coursesin a modular format and provide 24/7 access to information via an online portal. Minister of State for Finance and Transport, Josephine Teo said theestablishment of the ...

Singapore firms stop Indonesia palm oil exports to Iran

9 Feb 2012

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Singaporean firms have stopped supplying Iran with Indonesian palm oil on concerns over the country's ability to make payments in the wake of Western sanctions, trading sources in Singapore said on Thursday. Palm oil traders in Southeast Asia, which supplies 90 percent of the vegetable oil globally, stopped taking Iranian letters of credit late last year ahead of fresh U ...

In Singapore, Finding Peace Among the Pain of Thaipusam

9 Feb 2012

Three nights ago, N. Ramanathan, a middle-aged government worker, was one of the hundreds who stood outside Singapore's Sri Srinivasa Perumal Temple at midnight. It was the eve of the grueling Hindu festival known as Thaipusam and he was there to support a friend undergoing the ritual of kavadi-bearing -- an agonizing rite that requires devotees to pierce their tongues, torsos, and lips with ...